Never Let You Go
by Angelustatt
Summary: Missing scene from the Torchwood season 1 episode Countrycide. Ianto is trying to deal with what he has been through...but he doesn't have to deal with it alone.


_Author's Note : This is my first step into the world of Torchwood fanfic, so I hope I did it...and more importantly, Jack and Ianto justice. They are both complex and amazing characters that have gotten into my head lately. So after watching Countrycide and noting how protective everyone always seems to be with Ianto, this fic nagged me to write this little missing scene. Hope you enjoy...and a HUGE thank you to Deb and LovinJackson for thier feedback. _

_Stacie, Deb...this one's for you and all the Janto fans out there._

**TORCHWOOD-TORCHWOOD-TORCHWOOD-TORCHWOOD-TORCHWOOD-TORCHWOOD-TORCHWOOD**_  
_

It started with a whimper.

A tiny noise, almost small enough to be missed altogether. But Captain Jack Harkness wasn't the sort of man who slept easy any more. How long had it been since he had really slept and not laid awake, staring at the ceiling...like he was now?

If anyone had actually asked Jack that question, he was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to give them an answer. An honest one, anyway.

Sliding his overcoat off his legs, Jack sat up on the tiny sofa he had attempted to sleep on. The apartment around him was as neat as a pin, everything in it's place and spotlessly clean. Not that Jack had expected anything else. He had known before he had walked through the door, that Ianto Jones would live the way he dressed. Immaculate, with an attention to detail.

There was so much about Ianto that he kept to himself. Or maybe it was just that no one had ever bothered to ask him? To give a damn about who Ianto was, beyond the coffee boy and go to man when you needed something cleaned up. But more and more, Jack could see the real Ianto shining through, revealing himself without knowing. In little comments, glances, the way he carried himself in the team and around Jack himself.

Another whimper carried through from the bedroom and without another moment's hesitation, Jack got up and went to check on Ianto.

"_You should put some ice on that." Jack nodded towards the bruising that was marring Ianto's face. He pulled up by the curb, leaning forward slightly to glance up at the apartment block Ianto Jones apparently called home. "Nice..."_

"_Yeah...thanks." Ianto mumbled, meeting Jack's eyes briefly before looking away. His headache had grown worse since they had gotten back to Cardiff and away from the horrors of that village. Even now, Ianto could smell the coppery stench of blood and death. He could hear the twisted laughter of Evan and his felllow villagers. His stomach rolled as he fumbled for the door handle, suddenly needing fresh air. _

_Even as his feet hit the pavement, Ianto could hear Jack's door open and close before footsteps came from around the other side of the Range Rover. A warm hand settled on Ianto's shoulder, squeezing gently. "Come on, I'll take the sofa tonight...you shouldn't be alone."_

_It was on the tip of Ianto's tongue to protest and say that he was fine, that he didn't need Jack to stay with him and hold his hand through the night. But the truth was, Ianto wanted exactly that. Tosh had gone home to bury herself in work. Owen had taken Gwen for drinks at the pub. Everyone was dealing with what had happened in their own way...and then there was Ianto, who wasn't at all sure about how to deal with what he had seen. _

"_You don't have to stay, Jack." Ianto told him as he unlocked the door to his apartment and stepped inside. "But thank you. I think I'll make us some coffee. I'm not really sure I could sleep right now."_

It had been well after one in the morning before Ianto had finally excused himself and gone for a shower before crawling into bed. They had sat quietly side by side on the sofa, nursing their coffees and talking about what had happened. Jack had kept quiet, letting Ianto open up about it all, listening to what he had seen and felt, knowing that he would be the only one who would ever hear this. Tomorrow, Ianto would be back in his suit and back at the Hub as though nothing had happened. The way the others would be.

But Ianto would never be like the others, no matter how much he strived to be. He was driven by his own motivations to be within Torchwood. Seeking something he couldn't find any where else.

Brave enough to stand up for what he believed in, yet still so naive and innocent in so many ways that Jack felt driven to protect Ianto. Seeing so much inside the younger man that was lost to Jack and had been for a long time. It was like touching sunlight again after years of living in the dark and Jack couldn't bear to lose that.

Now as Jack quietly stood in the doorway watching him, he could see just how much Evan and his twisted group of sickos had gotten to Ianto. The young man was twisted and tangled up in the sheets, his hands clenched into fists, clutching at the bed beneath him. Sweat bathed Ianto's face, adding a soft sheen to his skin in the moonlight and highlighting the bruises and cuts that covered him. Anger coiled up inside Jack's stomach like a viper at that sight, recalling the sheer terror he had seen in Ianto's eyes in those first moments after he had burst into the house to rescue his team. Evan had beaten Ianto bloody and threatened to cut his throat.

Treating him like meat. Like livestock.

A tremble rolled over Ianto, his head tipping back, mouth opening and closing in his sleep as a strangled whimper leeched out of his throat. "No...no, please."

Jack crossed the floor and gently sat down on the bed beside Ianto, reaching out to quietly thumb away a single tear escaping down his cheek. "Shhhh. It's okay. It's over, Ianto. You're safe."

"Jack?" Ianto's eyes flickered briefly, then opened, locking on Jack instantly in the dark. Bright with fear and shining with unshed tears. "I-I tried...He was too strong...I'm sorry..."

"Shhhh, there's nothing to be sorry about. He's not hurting anyone ever again. It's over."

Ianto seemed to search the dark briefly, as though he expected the shadows to come alive and come after him. Brilliant blue orbs turned to Jack, full of questions. "Don't...don't leave me?"

"Are you kidding me?" Jack flashed Ianto a brilliant, warm smile before he leaned forward and kissed him softly on his bruised forehead. "I'm not going anywhere. Go back to sleep. I'm going to stay here all night and keep watch. Keep you safe."

Ianto closed his eyes as he felt Jack's lips on his forehead. A moment later, Jack's hand slid over Ianto's and squeezed gently, letting him know that he was there.

The fear, the nightmares, the horrible face of Evan that kept appearing in Ianto's mind was all starting to fade now. Sinking back into the dark as he allowed sleep to claim him again, rolling over and curling into Jack slightly. It was a risky move, fraught with the danger of rejection. But as Ianto felt Jack ease himself onto the bed more so that he could be comfortable, he settled in further and relaxed, Jack's hand releasing his to move up and stroke his brow.

"I'll be right here. Nothing's going to hurt you."

Ianto's breathing slowed and deepened as sleep overcame him completely, his face smoothing out, filling with an almost childlike innocence again. Something that Jack had been worried was lost forever after what Ianto had been through. It had been so tempting to slip a Retcon into the coffee and just let Ianto forget it all, but after listening to everything that had happened – the way Ianto had selflessly stood up against Evan to try and let Tosh escape – Jack knew it would be wrong to take that from him. He would come back from this, grow through it into someone Ianto hadn't thought he could ever be.

Jack continued to let his thumb play back and forth across Ianto's brow, smiling to himself. It had been a long time since anyone had gotten under the skin of Captain Jack Harkness the way Ianto had.

Closing his eyes, Jack listened to the sound of Ianto's soft breathing beside him. Maybe Ianto wasn't the only one who would grow out of what happened and allow things to change? Maybe it was time for Jack to take a chance himself and open his mind to what was before him?

Maybe something good could come out all that evil after all?


End file.
